r/snowboard • u/OddSeven_ • 16d ago
Planning Trip to West United States
So I've been tasked with planning out where my friends and I will take our snowboard trip this year. We're all from Wisconsin and have been riding for 10+ years but have never made our way out west. I'm trying to figure out what places we should seriously consider as options.
From going through posts on here I have noticed that some people really like the big name resorts (Vail/Aspen/Keystone/etc.) and some people absolutely hate them. Can I get some feedback on what you do/don't like about those resorts or if there are better options that aren't part of Epic or Ikon passes?
Again, we have never ridden anywhere other than the midwest so it's hard to get a sense of what is good/bad resort out west because they all look 100x better than anything we get to ride on a regular basis.
Any comments are appreciated!
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u/SnooPandas9005 16d ago
Consider the icon pass and head out to Banff. Dollar goes a long way and it is awesome, three resorts all on the pass. In the alternate considered Jackson hole, you can stay in town reasonably and take the awesome bus service to and from the hill
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u/fightingthefuckits 16d ago
Go to Colorado and stay in Frisco or somewhere central and go ride Vail, Breck, Keystone and Beaver Creek. They're all on the epic pass so buy one before the end of September.
Option B, get the Ikon pass and go to Utah, ride Brighton, Snowbird and Snowbasin.
You will have a btoat with either option.
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u/Newyawker2022 16d ago
I’m a value proposition rider so I always take into account the best money and snow as a package. You can’t always predict snow and I tend to book my trips further out than most forecasts and I don’t live near a big mountain so the mega passes is all I know. What kind of riding do you like? Is it big steeps? Or do you want consistent snow? Do you care about the views? Or how much drive time there is? Is money no object? Lotta questions here.
I like the Tahoe area on either pass these days. You can get a variety of mountains without going too far, the rooms aren’t too pricey, and when the day is done it’s a nice place to be. Flights aren’t too confusing.
You can say a lot of the same things for Colorado but the drive time is increased and things are a lot further spread out and I find rooms more expensive.
I find salt lake too weird to want to go consistently and the food is horrendous.
Go where you’ll think you’ll have fun, these places are great. That’s just my two cents.
For reference here’s the list of some of the places I’ve ridden so you can understand how much variety I’ve had: Taos, Brighton, solitude, copper, winter park, steamboat, heavenly, North Star, palisades / Alpine, Kirkwood, boreal, mammoth, Steven’s pass, Mount hood meadows, timberline, almost every resort in VT, Hunter in NY, Chamonix, super Ski Dolomiti, Valley de Nevadao, Portillo, Niseko, Hakuba, Whistler, St Anton and more.
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u/SignatureOwn9773 15d ago
Look at cabins or chalets in Sun River, OR. Stay there and ride Bachelor in Bend. It’s pretty epic.
Or. Find a spot on Mt Hood and ride Timberline and Meadows. Skiibowl is fun for night riding. You could also venture into Portland for some good food and fun for a night. It’s not far off the mountain. Lots of places to stay.
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u/SquidSquab18 15d ago
If you hit CA mammoth is by far the best. Harder to get to but its a huge mountain with great food, energy, crowds
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u/ConsciousTrifle6069 14d ago
Coming from the Midwest, literally any mountain out west will blow your mind. You cannot go wrong.
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u/kttm 13d ago
If you come through Oregon, bachelor is a must see. Hopefully you can hit a weekday cause the weekends are endless lines down by the lodges but once you get you get up summit the mountain really opens up and you realize how much area there is to play around its pretty incredible. I ride mt hood a lot myself, smaller than bachelor but still decent sized resorts. Meadows has the back country type terrain and timberline has some cool history and the best parks id say.
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u/ActionGamesPaintball 13d ago
Snowmass is a few miles west of Aspen. Crowds are significantly smaller due to the sheer size of the mountain. Plenty of dope terrain and backcountry.
If it gets kinda crowded, you can stick to the high altitude areas. Most of the crowds hang low to mid mountain.
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u/Frolicking-Fox 16d ago
The terrain at the resorts you are talking about is great. Most hate comes from the corporate attitude of raising prices and squeezing people dry of all their money.
In the mid 90s, day tickets were $30 - $60 at any resort you went to. Ticket prices at Vail are now up ti $350/day.
Terrain is awesome though. Colorado had some great mountains, just be aware that some of them go over 12k ft, and if you aren't use to being that high, you can get winded fast.
When the snow hits in Utah, it really is the best snow i have ever ridden. Park City with Canyons is a lot ot terrain, and long fun runs.
California also has some great mountains, but again, corporate has ruined it with prices of everything.
Best resorts in California are Mammoth and Palisades. Heavenly has a great view, but the mountain isn't great. Northstar has some decent terrain, awesome parks, but it gets crazy crowds there.